By Marie-Therese Nanlong

Poor policy uptake and inadequate research space among others have been identified as factors posing some challenges to the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, NIPSS.

This is as the Institute is set to graduate its Senior Executive Course, SEC 44 participants who have completed their course.

The Director-General of the Institute, Professor Ayo Omotayo who disclosed these lapses at a press briefing at the NIPSS premises at Kuru, Jos, Plateau State, stated the participants’ graduation ceremony would be held on December 3.

According to him, “… I can tell you that in our library, in our archive, we have a very rich rapporteur, solutions, and practical strategic things that can change the face of Nigeria… One major thing I have found to be absent over time is the visibility of the Institute at national dialogues.

“I also found out that there have been very poor policy uptakes. When the federal government sends very high-level individuals here for reflections, engagements, and research and they come up with solutions to the chosen national problems based on national priorities, it is expected that some of the things that come up should be adopted and used by the critical stakeholders but you find out that most of those things rarely get out to where they should be and I feel this is one of the major things we should address.

“Visibility is very key that is why we need to reposition NIPSS and put it on the pedestal where whatever action, whatever activity is going on here must be shown to the Nigerian public even if not to the whole world. We decided to have a special department for public affairs to ensure there is a well-designed programme of the presentation of what we do in NIPSS to the whole world.”
In efforts to put the Institute at the forefront, Professor Omotayo stated, “I have received some recommendations on how we can transform NIPSS and give it pride of place as Nigeria’s foremost think-tank. NIPSS is multi-sectoral, our motto is towards a better society to have such a better society, we need to up our game to ensure that we get the society that we envision.

“Every solution to all Nigeria’s problems is in our archives, we are going to ensure that once we put all the machinery in place, we will begin to push out these for the consumption of the public. One of the efforts being made so our products don’t sit in the archives…

“We are talking to stakeholders, experts, and consultants on the possibility of setting up a media outfit like a television station where we can have an outlet to push our agenda so that those who need the knowledge that we produce from here can easily get them. The knowledge we produce here is like prescription drugs.”

To improve infrastructure, the DG added, “We need to improve drastically on our physical facilities. A lot of the buildings here were constructed with mud and maintenance has been an issue, we need to upgrade our facilities and we are approaching donor organizations to come to our aid and build for us an International Conference Centre, we don’t have one.

“We want to make this place an international centre where we can engage in research of high standard, where we can bring in the best brains within and outside the country. We need an international guest house where people can come and feel that they have not even left Europe or America…”

On the participants’ graduation, he explained, “Our graduation ceremony had to be postponed till next week, graduation activities are on. On the 1st of December, we will have a Presidential parley at Abuja, to present what we have done in the past year to the President, on the 2nd of December, we will have the graduation lecture here to be delivered by the Vice-President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, on that same day, we will have the graduation dinner and on Saturday, December 3rd, we will have the graduation ceremony…”